Saudi Arabian Government ministers have this week signed a $9 billion contract to develop an industrial site around a phosphate mine.
Over 700 miles north of Riyadh, the Waad-al-Shimal project will be linked to Gulf ports by a brand new railway system.
With the low price of US shale gas expected to drive down the price of oil in the coming years, Saudi Arabia is keen to diversify its economy away from the supply of raw product.
The Saudi economy has become increasingly focused on oil & gas in recent years. In 2002 the oil & gas industry accounted for 37.7% of the country’s GDP, by 2012 that figure had risen to 49.7%.
The Waad-al-Shimal facility will produce phosphate products including animal feedstock, ammonia, plastics and detergents.
Recent interest in diversifying the economy have done little to displace Saudi Arabia as Opec’s prime oil producer, with the country still producing at huge levels. However, the Kingdom has begun to trim its output in recent months.
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